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Sunday, February 19, 2012

This is one of my wife's ancestors, and he fought with the famed Orphan Brigade. Because of this, there are a wealth of books and information available for research.

He enlisted as a Private in Company B on October 2nd 1861 at Camp Green River in Kentucky. He fought at Shiloh, the defense of Vicksburg, Baton Rouge, Hartsville, Stones River, Jackson, Chickamauga, Mission Ridge, Rocky Face Gap, Resaca, Dallas, Kennesaw Mountain, Peachtree Creek, Intrenchment Creek, Jonesboro, and Cavalry operations in South Carolina when the Brigade was converted to Cavalry. He was wounded at Dallas.

The 9th's flag.

The most famous member of Company B by far is Johnny Green, and in his memoirs he writes of two incidents involving Jim Burba:

"We slept in this post one night; when I wakend up in the morning as I opened my eys I saw a great big rattlesnake coiled up on top of my blanket. I rolled out in a hurry, at the same time calling out to my messmate who was sharing my blanket, “Rattle snake in bed with us!” He got out in a hurry too, but mr rattler after poking out his tongue once or twice crawled quietly away beside a log near by & coiled up again; Jim Burba, (3) one of our Co, cut a forked stick, crept up on the other side of the log & pinioned Mr Rattle snake with his head under the fork of the stick & captured him alive. With this pet in his hands he was running nearly every body out of camp until the Capt made him kill the creature."

[It's fitting, because it sounds exactly like something that my wife's brother would do.]

He also writes about the Battle of Stones River:

"One man raised his gun to fire at Jim Burba running towards him while placing a cap on his gun. Jim called to him, “Surrender or I’ll kill you!” The fearless hearted Yankee heard his threat with scorn & fired point blank at Him; by some mysterious intervention he missed him, though not ten feet from him. Jim at once executed his threat & sent that poor fellow beyond all the cares of this world."

We're still trying to find his grave, but we believe this is it (we're waiting on the cemetery to confirm it for us). If it is, we'd like to get a proper memorial set up.